Market-Oriented Ethnography Revisited. Eric J. Arnould and Linda L. Price

All ideas below are of their authors of the article Market-Oriented Ethnography Revisited.

Three types of market-oriented ethnography: macro, micro and meso.

-          all consider cultural context as a public space in which the individual , his or her social relations, and meaning intersect in a dynamic process of co-constitution.

Macro-level

-          focuses on the identification of cultural templates for action and interpretation that consumers draw upon to give structure to their consumption choices and life goals.

Micro-level
Relationship between a given market-provided resource and the individual consumer. 

•   showering behavior for plumbing supply manufacturer

Meso-level

An approach on what people do and not what they say, and what people say about their products in a natural context. The approach of “home visits” displays meso-level approach well. Example is family dinners were the researchers join the home and spend hours participating in shopping, carting the children around, preparing, cleaning up and other activities in the process.

 Personal Response 

The article raises some interesting points. When performing ethnographic research about a brand the researcher shouldn’t think how does my customer really feel about and use my brand. The researcher should try to identify how the products are used in cultural and social practices of the consumer’s life.

I think this article gives a good overview of the different level approaches to market-oriented ethnographic research. And since it clearly speaks positive of the meso-level approach, it makes you think about current reality TV programs. Although the people in reality TV are usually not the most intelligent and do not really care of their public image, they demonstrate a consumer group. Thus, examining reality TV and their behaviors could provide knowledge of the product. For example if the people in Big Brother received a new tool to test and play around with, then market researchers could watch the responses that are given. In one sense reality TV is the cheapest form of ethnography. Provide free of charge a product to the house and you’ll see how exactly it will provide value to those users.